CHENNAI: Dinesh Karthik has been appointed as Tamil Nadu’s captain for Vijay Hazare Trophy, which will be held from September 24 to October 16 in Jaipur (Elite Group C).The state’s selection committee, led by M Senthilnathan, met on Monday and nominated him as captain. Sources said the names of Abhinav Mukund, R Ashwin and Vijay Shankar were also discussed.
“Happy and delighted to be back at the job. It is a huge honour to lead the state. It is a big responsibility. I will give my best shot and try to take Tamil Nadu cricket forward,’’ said Karthik.The ace wicketkeeper-batsman is keen to help Tamil Nadu regain the trophy. “With a lot of seniors around, we will definitely have a crack at it. I will certainly like to have team with the right mixture of experience and youth. We need to begin well and take forward the momentum in the tournament.”
Tamil Nadu have not performed to their potential over the last two seasons, despite having a robust league and solid infrastructure. Karthik feels the infusion of fresh talent is the way forward. “A reason was the inability of some players to up the quality of their game in challenging situations. I was surprised that there are not many players at the U-19 and U-23 levels who are pushing themselves for a place in the senior side. That is why the same set of players have been at it over for the last couple of years.”
Tamil Nadu chief coach D Vasu is eager to work with Karthik. “It is nice to have DK as captain. He is a very experienced player and knows his job well. With many senior players likely to be available for the Vijay Hazare, I am sure he will lead from the front.”